Vehicle wheel



T. C. WHITEHEAD.

VEHICLE WHEEL. APPLICATION FILED. FE. 2l. |921.

`Patented Oct. 24, 1922.

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Patented` Oct. 24, 1922.

UNITED STA-TES THOMAS c. WHITEHEAD, or DETROIT, ivrronrcfnrr.

VEHICLE WHEEL.

Application filed February 21, 1921. Serial No. 446,910.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, THoMAs C. VHrrn-` HEAD, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Detroit, inthe county of `Wayne and State of Michigan, have invented certain new and -useful Improve.

ments in Vehicle vWheels, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

kThis invention relates to vehicle Wheels and more particularly to wheels for tractors or the like.

lt is an object of the invention to provide a double rim for a vehicle wheel, one of the rim members receiving a solid tire adapting the vehicle equipped with such wheels to travel upon a paved surface Without injury thereto, and the other rim member being cleated to furnish proper traction upon a yielding surface, and more particularly wet or muddy ground, the tread diameter of the tire being suiiiciently greater than the overall diameter of the cleated rim to insure engagement solely of said tirek with the pavement or unyielding surface, While when the described wheel engages a muddy or yielding surface the weight of the vehicle will cause thetire carrying portion of the rim to sink sutliciently to engage the cleated member of the rim with said surface, and

. thus afford the necessary traction.

.Another object of the invention is to provide a vehicle wheel of a double disk type, a hollow chamber intermediate the disks being utilized to receive materialv such as concrete, for increasing the weight of the Wheel and thereby improving its traction.

A further feature of the invention is the provision of hooks upon the outer portion of a disk wheel for engagement by tire chains. and the formation of pockets in the disk body of the wheel for receiving said hooks to avoid said hooks forming undesirable projections.

In the drawings: Y

Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of a wheel improved' in accordance with the invention.

Figure 2 is a transverse sectional View of the wheel, the section beingtaken on line 2-2 of Figure 1` In these views the reference character A designates the body of the wheel, said body being formed of disk members dished toward each other and integrally formed at their peripheries with thev rim B.k Between the disk members A there is formed a chamber C which, in accordance with the invention, is adapted to be filled with concrete or like material as indicated at D, to add to the weight ofthe wheel and thus correspondingly improve the traction. To permit the introducing of said material into the chainber C, it is preferred to form one of the disks A (and preferably that one which is to be adjacent the vehicle), with a number vof man-holes E, which may be of circular form and, located adjacent the rim, and are normally engaged by cover members F.

The felly portion B of said wheel is engaged by the rim G, upon which a cushion tire H is mounted, said tire being preferably formed of rubber. The rim G projects beyond the sides of the felly portion and thereby provides an annular shoulder Gr. I is an auniliary rim which may be formed of sheet metal, and which is bolted as indicated at J to the felly portion B of said wheel, preferably abutting against an annular shoulder X'formed upon the outer face of the wheel. The annular shoulder X forms a pilot for the iiange Z of the supplemental rim. The rim I is transversely cleated as indicated at K, the outside diameter of the cleated rim being less by a predetermined amount than the diameter' of the tread surface of said tire. The cast member of the wheel has thickened portions L at the juncture of the disk members A with the rim B, and the shank por-y tions of hooks M are cast into said thickened portions, the hooked ends of the said members M projecting divergently toward the axes of the wheel. It is preferred to form pockets N in each disk member to receive the projecting ends of said hooks so that there will be no danger of the hooks being broken 0E through forming obstructions at the sides of the wheel. Said hooks are adapted for engagement bythe usual tire chains, one of which is indicated in dash lines in Figure 2.

In the use of the described wheel, when a vehicle equipped therewith is travelling upon an unyielding or paved surface, the traction will be secured entirely through en gagement of the tire H with said surface,

said tire maintaining the cleated rim I out of contact with the pavement. VheH, however, such a vehicle encounters a relatively soft surface, and more particularly wet or muddy ground, the tire H will sink into such a surface permitting the latter to be engaged by the cleated rim I which will then afford the necessary tractionl which could not, on fsuch ak surface, be -deri'vedlfrom tire H.

Weighting of the Wheel by filling the chamber C thereof with 'heavy'niateri'al D is desirable since it vresults in an improved traction and tends to impart to the vehicle as a Whole, amore stable equilibrium. It .is a desirable feature oi thus applying Weight 'tothe Wheel, thatsueh Weight need-not be transmitted through the axles of the ve- .hele, and Apla-ees no strain upon said axles for upenthe traine otith'e `vehicle proper. ln vthe use of the 'described Wheel, the hooks for `15 engagement by itire lohains :are'la desirable provision7 although `the ,use of such ohains will be unnecessary except under exceptional Aconditions :suoli as travelling of the wheel :over a surface having a considerable coating of snow, suchae might v1prevent roper traction being alforded either by t e yieldable tire or eleated rim.

. What I claim as my, invention of said Wheel `forming a-seat for one of the *flanges of said auxiliary rim.

Q "Ilhe eonibination with :a vehicle Wheel, of yan auxiliary run detaehably secured to said Wheel, said'auxlliary `rim having 1an an- .fnuilar flange, and @an annular shoulder-on one side of said Wheel forming a seat for said flange.

In 'testimony `whereof I .aix my signature.

THOMAS VHITEHEAD. 

